


Cold Day

by Vakaara



Category: Dragon Ball
Genre: Jealous vegeta, M/M, Pre-Slash, They’re talking about the adorable new Broly, not the raaghhhh useless lump from the earlier movies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2020-04-01
Packaged: 2021-03-01 01:49:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23427271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vakaara/pseuds/Vakaara
Summary: Goku’s always excited to meet a stronger fighter, but it’s not so great when Vegeta gets mad at him about it.
Relationships: Son Goku/Vegeta (Dragon Ball)
Comments: 27
Kudos: 159





	Cold Day

Frozen air nipped his lungs. Goku grinned and spun a loop around Vegeta in the air. 

“Are we there yet?” 

Vegeta narrowed his eyes. His jaw clenched. “If you ask that one more goddamn time, Kakarot.”

“Then what?” Goku’s grin widened. Fatherhood made Vegeta so much more fun to tease. He’d had to learn patience. Sort of. 

Growling, Vegeta shot ahead. 

“Hey, wait up!” Goku dove after him, squinting against the glare from the ice far below. Bulma had decided that Goku wasn’t responsible enough to carry the dragon radar this time. He didn’t really know their destination, except it was probably gonna be cold. 

Ahead of him, Vegeta swerved in the air then descended. The blue and white of his armor blended with the frozen ground. Goku deliberately overshot and looped around a few times before joining him, still enjoying the crisp air. 

Vegeta shook his head as Goku landed. “Childish.” 

Stretching his arms over his head, Goku smiled back. “But fun.” 

Muttering under his breath, Vegeta stomped away. 

He was extra cranky today. What was up with that? Goku jogged after him, holding his ki low so he didn’t disturb the creaking ice too much. He could feel Vegeta suppressing his own ki too. 

Vegeta stopped abruptly. Goku tried to stop, but slid on the ice. He bumped into Vegeta’s shoulder. “Ooof. We here?”

They stood at the top of a crevasse. Warmth registered against Goku’s stomach, and he realized Vegeta had thrown out a hand to stop Goku from sliding over the edge. 

“The dragonball’s down there.” Vegeta was frowning at the radar. “More or less underneath us.” 

“One of those ones, huh.” Dragonballs that showed up above or underneath were always the trickiest. The radar didn’t work great for giving an idea of height. “Guess it’ll be easier if we don’t knock any ice over.”

Vegeta abruptly stepped over the edge. Goku jumped and started to reach for him, before remembering they could both fly just fine. It was unnerving how low Vegeta’s ki felt when he suppressed it like this. Nothing like the intense hum Goku was used to. 

Stepping over the edge himself, Goku exerted just enough ki to slow his fall to a gentle drift. Below him, Vegeta was practically invisible against the black, blue, and white reflections. 

Vegeta’s descent stopped. He’d stepped into a small cave opening. Goku followed, coming up next to Vegeta’s shoulder. The air was so cold he could feel the heat coming off Vegeta as his ki kept his temperature stable. 

“It’s in here?” The tunnels through the ice were narrow, and the floor slick. Carved by running water maybe, on a warmer day. 

“Probably.” Vegeta sounded even grumpier than usual. “Back off, Kakarot, you’re hardly going to get lost.” 

“Are you mad at me or something?” Goku moved closer to Vegeta’s shoulder, trying to get a look at his face. 

“No.” Vegeta sped up, moving farther away. 

“I’m pretty sure you are though.” Goku stretched his legs and caught up easily. “Are you still mad I talked you into fusing?”

“Disgusting experience.” Ahah. So that was it. 

“We couldn’t have beat Broly otherwise, though, so we had to!” The tunnel had widened. Goku caught up with Vegeta and threw an arm over his shoulders, squeezing slightly when Vegeta tried to duck away. He was close enough now to catch Vegeta’s familiar scent even with the frigid air. “Man, that guy was super strong, I wanna fight him again someday!” 

Vegeta’s elbow connected hard with Goku’s stomach. Coughing, Goku dropped back. His side felt cold where he’d been leaning against Vegeta. “What was that for?”

“Shut up.” Condensation fogged the air in front of Vegeta. He paused, consulted the radar, then turned down the left hand fork of the passages ahead. “You’re fucking obsessed with him.”

“Aren’t you?” Goku followed, but kept out of elbowing range. “He’s not just super, he’s legendary! It’s been ages since I’ve fought someone that gave me that much trouble!” 

Ice trembled around them. Vegeta’s ki had spiked abruptly. He’d stopped moving and was standing in the passage ahead of Goku, fists clenched tightly. 

“Vegeta?” Goku moved forward cautiously, on alert for any more blows. “What’s going on?” 

He really was being weirdly quiet. Pressing his back against the icy wall and holding back a shiver, Goku slid around Vegeta so he could see Vegeta’s face. 

It was like the motion triggered something. Vegeta snarled and fisted his hands in Goku’s gi. Goku held himself limp as Vegeta slammed him into the wall. Cracks spidered out from where he hit. 

Something was wrong. Vegeta’s face was twisted in rage, but he also looked hurt. 

“Vegeta-“

“I’ll fucking strangle you if I have to listen to one more word about how wonderful Broly is.” He sounded mad enough to mean it. “You self-centered bastard.”

“Wait, what?”

Ice creaked as Vegeta pushed Goku harder against the wall. It was really cold down here with his ki suppressed. And Vegeta wasn’t making any sense. 

Vegeta abruptly released his hold on Goku and spun to head further down the tunnel. 

“Vegeta, wait up!” Goku grabbed Vegeta’s wrist, then slid into Vegeta’s back when Vegeta yanked that wrist forward to free himself. Perfect. Goku wrapped both arms around Vegeta to pin Vegeta’s arms against his sides. “Explain first, dragonball later.”

Growling, Vegeta twisted to free himself. He could break free if he really wanted to, but it’d take enough ki to collapse the tunnel they stood in. It’d be a real pain to get to the dragonball after that. 

“Fuck off, Kakarot.” Goku shifted quickly to avoid Vegeta’s skull smashing into his nose. “Why don’t you go have a heart-to-heart with your new favorite rival instead.”

“My what? Who?” He moved his foot before Vegeta could stomp on his toes. 

Ice slammed into his back. He’d weakened his footing enough for Vegeta to throw him against the wall again. 

“You fucking heard me.” Vegeta punctuated the snarl by smashing his heel into Goku’s foot. Goku grunted in pain but hung on. “Why are you following me around when you could just teleport off planet and spar with a _legendary Super Saiyan_?”

“Wait, are you _jealous_?” Shit. Shit, that was the wrong thing to say. 

Pain burst in his ribs. He’d loosened his arms too much, and Vegeta had gotten an elbow free. Goku lost his grip and Vegeta exploded away from him. The ice around them shivered again as Vegeta just barely kept his ki in check. 

“Why the fuck would I be jealous?” Goku didn’t think Vegeta had meant for that to come out shaky. Vegeta seemed to realize, eyes widening. “Forget it.” He turned his back on Goku again. “Let’s just get this over with.” 

“Vegeta, hold up.” This was bad. Goku reached to grab Vegeta’s wrist again, then stopped short. He’d only make Vegeta madder. 

Echoed footsteps came back to him as Vegeta got further away down the tunnel. Maybe it would be better to wait here. Tension had gathered in Goku’s shoulders. He didn’t like watching Vegeta move away from him like this. 

Vegeta vanished behind a curve of ice. Goku swallowed, started after him, then paused. It was silent now.

Footsteps resumed, moving closer this time. A glint of orange was held against Vegeta’s armor. 

“You found the dragonball.” Goku tried for a smile. It was why they were here, after all. 

Vegeta was not even close to smiling. “And now I’m leaving.” 

Ki gathered. Was he going to punch straight through all this ice to the surface? Probably. Vegeta could be pretty dramatic. 

“You’re still my favorite rival, you know.” Goku didn’t want Vegeta to leave before he cleared that up.

“ _What_.” Vegeta’s ki plummeted. He looked like Goku had slapped him in the face. 

Was he really that surprised? They’d been circling each other for so long, always pushing each other to new heights of strength. Goku couldn’t imagine anyone other than Vegeta filling that space. He didn’t want to. 

“You’re not replaceable, you know.” Goku walked slowly forward. Vegeta stayed frozen, letting Goku close the distance. Tugging the dragonball out of Vegeta’s hand, Goku dropped it into his backpack. Their breath steamed in the chilled air. 

It still caught Goku off balance that he had to look down to meet Vegeta’s eyes when they stood close to each other. 

“I’m glad you tried to kill me,” that came out weird, “if you hadn’t come to Earth and beaten me so badly, I’d never have trained so hard to catch you.” The brutal regime he’d put himself through on the journey to Namek. “If we hadn’t fought, Vegeta, I’d never have become a Super Saiyan.”

Vegeta’s eyes narrowed. “You’re welcome.” 

Right. Super Saiyan was a sore point with Vegeta, especially after Broly. 

Goku sighed, closed his eyes for a moment. Conversations with Vegeta were full of landmines. 

“You’re always looking, aren’t you?” Vegeta’s voice was bitter. Goku opened his eyes to see Vegeta addressing his comments to the ice near Goku’s shoulder. “Kakarot, you’re always looking for the next stepping stone to a higher level.”

“What? No!” Had the fight with Broly knocked Vegeta’s pride that much, that he’d refer to himself as a stepping stone? 

“No?” There was a cruel sneer in Vegeta’s voice and eyes as he turned back to Goku, “you weren’t so desperate to step another level higher that you decided you’d be glad for Hit to try to kill you, too?” 

Goku winced. Okay, that had maybe been a little selfish. His family had really panicked, for one. 

“I don’t give a shit, Kakarot,” Vegeta stepped forward and shouldered Goku aside, striding towards the exit, “just stop acting like we’re friends.” 

That hurt. “We are friends,” he paused, braced for Vegeta’s response. 

There wasn’t one. Vegeta ignored him completely and vanished along the tunnel. That was worse.

He remembered their first fight. How thrilled he’d been to be fighting such power. How much he’d wanted to fight Vegeta again, to surpass him, even if leaving him alive for that rematch was a dangerous risk. He’d wanted from that first fight to be sparring partners. He’d even told Vegeta as much.

Maybe that was it. There were a lot of people he wanted as sparring partners. That didn’t mean everyone was his rival. 

Vegeta’s familiar ki gathered and expanded as he took flight outside. Goku was so familiar with that ki he could sense it across dimensions with barely any effort. 

Ice winked out and blue sky replaced it as Goku teleported into Vegeta’s flight path. Vegeta just barely avoided running into him. His teeth showed in a snarl again. “Dammit, Kakarot-“

Goku spun to bring a kick down on Vegeta’s shoulder, knocking him to the ice below. He dove after, bowling Vegeta over and sitting on him before he could get up again.

“If you break the fucking radar, Kakarot,” the radar was fine, Goku could see it still gripped in Vegeta’s hand right hand. He grabbed both of Vegeta’s wrists and pinned them above Vegeta’s head for good measure. 

“Don’t ignore me, Vegeta.” It stung that he’d just fly off in the middle of their conversation like that.

“What the fuck do you want, Kakarot.” Vegeta sounded tired. He looked tired. Goku felt the lack of pressure as Vegeta stopped struggling and instead lay still against the ice. 

What did he want? Goku let go of Vegeta’s wrists and sat back. Vegeta’s eyes tracked him, but he didn’t move otherwise. 

“Spar with me.” Things were always clear then. Just the rush of blood and the joy of challenge. He’d never get bored of sparring with Vegeta. 

“No.” Vegeta glared. “Are you trying to prove some kind of point?”

“Why are you like this?” Goku heard his voice rise in frustration at the end of the sentence. “You’re the one who’s trying to prove things all the time. I just like sparring with you because we always push each other to get better.”

The give and take between them in sparring always felt easy and balanced. It was only in conversations that they went all lopsided. 

Vegeta’s face had gone rigid. Goku shuffled back through what he’d just said. Oops. Vegeta wasn’t going to like that comment about him trying to prove himself all the time. 

Goku tried to walk around the edge of anything that would prickle Vegeta’s pride, but he wasn’t doing real well with that today. 

“Why the fuck are _you_ like this,” Vegeta’s voice dripped with disbelief, “why are you following me around babbling sentimental nonsense?”

“Because you’re mad at me about something that isn’t anything!” It was probably something now, but at first it had just been a misunderstanding. “Why can’t you ever just listen?”

“That’s rich, coming from you,” teeth bared again, “you haven’t listened to a damn thing I’ve said all day.”

“I have been!” 

Vegeta glared and braced his left hand against the ice to sit up. Their faces were close now. Goku’s head buzzed with the need to keep that nearness. 

Chill wind fanned their hair sideways, whipping Goku’s bangs against his face. 

“You don’t need to lie, Kakarot.” Vegeta’s face was twisted. “I’ve seen how it is with everyone you’ve called rival before me.”

Oh. That was true, he’d thought of Tien, Piccolo, even Krillin as rivals of one kind or another. Back when he was a kid. But still.

“You’re different, Vegeta.” Goku frowned. He didn’t know how to put it into words. “You’re not someone I can leave behind.”

The clouds of their breath mixed in the icy air. Vegeta’s face had rearranged into shock. Goku placed both hands on Vegeta’s shoulders, creating more points of warmth in addition to where their thighs were pressed together. 

“Kakarot…” it was rare for Vegeta to be lost for words. Light glinted off the ice around as Goku waited. Shaking his head, Vegeta shifted in Goku’s grip. But he still wasn’t pulling away.

Goku pulled them both up, shifting his grip to Vegeta’s biceps. He kept his hands there as they stood, pulled Vegeta closer than they’d usually stand. Vegeta tilted his head up as Goku tipped his own chin down, each adjusting to the other. 

“Broly isn’t you.” Goku tightened his hands against Vegeta’s arms. “He’s just another benchmark we can both measure ourselves against.”

They were standing close enough for Goku to hear Vegeta’s sharp intake of breath. “Both of us.”

“Well yeah,” Goku didn’t understand where the surprise was, “if I’m going higher, you’re coming too.”

A smile curved Vegeta’s face. Not a smirk, but a genuine smile. Goku grinned back, feeling warm. Smiles from Vegeta were special. 

“Damn right, Kakarot,” Vegeta’s voice sounded warm now, too, “see that you remember that.”

Seemed like Vegeta was the one who’d needed reminding. That was okay. Even if Vegeta did fall behind, if he got too far in his own head, Goku would pull him up. He’d keep Vegeta with him. 

“I’ll remember.” Goku pulled Vegeta into a quick hug, drawing a surprised yelp. He released Vegeta and bounded back before Vegeta could get over his shock and start hitting. “Now let’s get the rest of those Dragonballs!”

Vegeta blinked at him for a moment, clearly off balance. Then he seemed to shake himself. Goku watched his expression smooth back into a smirk. 

“Just try to keep up.” 

Ki and ice shards swirled around Vegeta as he took off, following the radar’s pointer to their next target. Goku shot after him. The glittering landscape fell away below, and he filled his lungs with cold clear air. 

His flight path twinned with Vegeta’s as they spun away from the polar region, and everything felt right again.


End file.
